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[Advice] Beef with my Boiler Man

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout' started by Two Sandwiches, Feb 16, 2018.

  1. Two Sandwiches

    Two Sandwiches Contributing Member

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    This will be a long read, so bear with me...

    Let me start by saying I'm a person that takes great value in always doing the right thing. Often times, I'm also too nice about things and I don't stand up for myself or others when I should. I'm trying to change that.

    So, I moved into a new house in the country at the end of this last summer. Great house on a great piece of property in the boonies. An old farm house with a nice bass lake out back....pretty much what I've always wanted.

    Fast forward to about a month ago, and my boiler goes out. I live in Pennsylvania, so my house soon was 55 degrees.

    Company A had installed my boiler, water softener, sump pump, etc, and I could tell because they had their stickers everywhere. Because of this, I call them up. They're in town, local.

    They send a kid out who is maybe 20. I go down to the basement with him and we start looking at it. I don't know a lot about boilers, but I can look at things and figure out how they work, plus I have Google, so I start telling him what I think and asking questions. He tells me, "I don't know....I'm not the boiler expert." about four times. It's obvious he's just there because it's a Friday night and no one else would take the call.

    So, he thinks it's the regulator to the motor, I believe, knocks the boiler around a few times and says he's going to go get a part, then come back and replace it. He goes to get the part, but by time he gets back, the boiler has run 8 cycles. He tells me he can replace it if I want. I ask how much the part is, and he says he's not sure. I told him not to replace it.

    Two weeks later, boiler goes out again. 55 degrees. Friday night and I call the owner. He gives me a hard time over the phone telling me how his guy had the part and I sent him away. I told him I wasn't convinced that was the part, the kid didn't seem to know what he was doing, and he couldn't tell me a price, so of course I sent him away. He tells me the part was $110, so I said to send him out.

    The same kid comes out and tries to switch the part. After an hour, he can't get it, so he asks if it's okay if he leaves me without heat till the next morning when his boss can come out. I asked if I had a choice, since I have a newborn and my house is 55, and he basically shrugs his shoulders.

    Next morning the boss calls asking if my hest is fixed. I said no. He questions why his guy would leave me without heat and then decides to come out. After an hour, he finally realized the kid brought the wrong part model. He goes and gets the part and puts it in. While he was doing this we leave the house. He calls me and tells me that everything is good, he just left the house, bill is on the table, etc.

    We return home an hour later to a 55 degree house with no boiler. I call him and tell him that it's locked out, I reset it and we'll see how long it runs for. He responds by saying it was the first time he's ever installed that part and he was reading the manual AFTER he got home and he wants to come out tomorrow to change a setting.

    He comes out on a Monday and changes the setting. By Wednesday, boiler is not working again. I call him and tell him he's not coming back to the house and if a Company B tells me I need that part, I'll pay him for it. Otherwise he'll get his part back. He says he'll send me a new bill because he has to charge me a service charge at least.

    New bill is $110 for the part and $94 for service.

    Company B comes out and looks at completely different components and replaces them and gets them working for $170. Oh, and Company A didn't plumb the boiler properly when they installed it. That's going to be $1600.

    I call company A back to tell him what happened and he starts dissing on company B saying hopefully he knows what he's doing, etc. and that it was a different owner that installed the boiler improperly.

    Whatever.

    Yesterday I go into his business to return his part. I don't need it. That $109 part is $45 online. If I need it, I'll buy it and install it myself.

    He tells me it's been too long to return it. I told him it's been out for a week I just haven't had a chance to return it, and he can take it or leave it, but he's not getting another dime from me.

    Guy looks like he wants to kill me and starts screaming at me at the top of his lungs to get out and that I'm a F*cling scammer.

    I told him he was scamming me, with a 2.5 x markup on price for a part I didn't need. Told him if he wanted to take me to court, go ahead, but that I could write my experience everywhere online I saw his company name. And I could contact the BBB.

    I left.


    Would you pay the guy half his service charge? My wife says absolutely not, but I'm wondering if I should.

    Sorry to be so long winded.
     
  2. No Worries

    No Worries Contributing Member

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    Do not pay.
     
  3. Mr. Brightside

    Mr. Brightside Contributing Member

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    Is this the only boiler guy in your town? If I get bad service once from anyone, I ain't going back to the same business.
    Fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again.
     
  4. I am a Donut

    I am a Donut Contributing Member

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    That’s an incompetent company. Find the state agency that licenses that business and file a complaint.
     
  5. Exiled

    Exiled Member

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    pay the guy but don't tell your wife
     
  6. Space Ghost

    Space Ghost Contributing Member

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    Find out the process to file in small claims court, in detail. Your post was a little hard to follow, but it sounds like he screwed up the job from the beginning and never fixed anything. If this is the case, take all of those costs including parts and labor. Fill out the form, print it and take it to his business. Tell him to return his product and to give you a bill showing the account paid in full or you will be filing a small claims against him. Tell him the process in detail of how to file a small claims (its actually quite simple). If he doesn't, file it. I believe you can get 3x the value of your loss.
     
  7. Nook

    Nook Member

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    Honestly, because you are in a small rural community in Pennsylvania, you need to establish your dominance early so that it does not become an issue.

    I suggest ordering a thick belt with a heavy buckle. Then tell your wife you are going out for some fresh air. Drive to the place of business and beat the 20 year old with the belt and heavy belt buckle until he throws up. Then duct tape the part to his chest and tell him to tell his boss that if he crosses you again that you will cause a gas leak while his family is sleeping.

    Further take the company truck and claim it as your own. Proudly drive it around town as a badge of honor.
     
    R0ckets03, BigMaloe, Jontro and 3 others like this.
  8. K mf G

    K mf G Contributing Member

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    The next time you tell this story you need to start with explaining what a boiler is. I can only imagine from the context it has something to do with keeping your house above 55 degrees. Pay him for the service charge not for the part. It is probably the right thing to do not the best thing to do.
     
    #8 K mf G, Feb 16, 2018
    Last edited: Feb 16, 2018
    BigShasta likes this.
  9. kevC

    kevC Contributing Member

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    TLDR but the only time you should boil beef is in Pho.
     
  10. peleincubus

    peleincubus Member

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    I would pay the service charge even though in my opinion you should not have to. Cost of being a human sometimes you get screwed in these situations like this. At least it's only 65$.
     
  11. heypartner

    heypartner Contributing Member

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    You need to try Mala Sichuan's Boiled Beef

    [​IMG]
     
  12. theimpossibles1

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    Don't forget to fu*k his wife and casually mention his children's names.

    Yes, I also have watched too many movies.
     
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  13. CometsWin

    CometsWin Breaker Breaker One Nine

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    Not only should you not pay for the part or service, you should invoice him for your time.
     
    Nook likes this.
  14. Buck Turgidson

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    This is Texas, bro, it's propane and propane accessories.

    The only boilers we know about have shrimp or crawfish in 'em.
     
  15. BigShasta

    BigShasta Contributing Member

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    For you Texas folk, replace boiler with Furnace.
     
  16. Buck Turgidson

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    We don't have those either.

    How about fireplace or wood stove?
     
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  17. Two Sandwiches

    Two Sandwiches Contributing Member

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    Technically, but Company B is about 35 miles from my house, and they came out, fixed it properly, and charged half the service charge that this idiot did.
     
  18. Two Sandwiches

    Two Sandwiches Contributing Member

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    I figure it's an even draw.

    He got his part back. He gets no money from me.


    He doesn't owe me anything for failing to fix my heat on three separate occasions, and forcing my one month old son to sleep in a 55 degree house.
     
    CometsWin likes this.
  19. Jontro

    Jontro Member

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    hire this breh and give him their office address.

    [​IMG]
     
  20. LongTimeFan

    LongTimeFan Contributing Member

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    Not familiar with PA law, but if this was Texas company A could potentially owe you money.

    Negligent install which forces you to hire a different company to do it right. Damages would be the amount of money paid to company B above minus the monies paid to company A.

    I would not pay him, and if he continues to harass you, I would file against him in small claims court.
     
    BigMaloe and Two Sandwiches like this.

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